Northshore School District students who took the ACT exam during the 2010-11 school year continued to score above the state score in all four test areas:

• English – 24.5 district score, 22.3 state score

• Math – 24.9 district score, 22.9 state score

• Reading – 25.1 district score, 23.1 state score

• Science – 24.1 district score, 22.3 state score

The composite score, consisting of the four content areas of English, reading, math and science, was 24.8 for Northshore students, while the state score was 22.8 and the national score was 21.

Washington state students finished with the ninth highest composite score nationally. Scores are scaled from one (lowest) to 36 (highest).

A larger percentage of Northshore students also met or exceeded the ACT benchmarks than the state percentage.Eighty-eight percent of Northshore students met or exceeded the benchmark for English composition, as compared with 76 percent for the state. Percentages that met or exceeded benchmarks in other college coursework were:

• college algebra – 75 percent district, 60 percent state

• college social studies – 77 percent district, 64 percent state

• college biology – 53 percent district, 40 percent state

A benchmark score is the minimum score needed on an ACT subject-area test to indicate a 50 percent chance of obtaining a B or higher or an approximate 75 percent chance of obtaining a C or higher in college-level coursework.

The ACT established college readiness benchmarks for designated college courses, English composition, 18 on the ACT English test; algebra, 22 on the Act math test; social science, 21 on the ACT reading test; and biology, 24 on the ACT science test. Four hundred and twenty of the 13,667 Washington state 12th grade students who took the ACT were from the Northshore School District, which is 113 more Northshore students than the previous year.

"We should all be proud that our students continue to outperform their peers on state and national levels," said Northshore School District Superintendent Larry Francois. "Our students’ performance on the ACT is an important indicator of the career and college readiness of our students."

The ACT, a national curriculum-based test, is primarily used for admission into colleges and universities.